Jude Porter and the Lightning Stone
by Gamer AlchemistZ
Summary: Sequel to Next Generation. Jude is going on his second year at Hogwarts with his best friends James and Emma. Last year, he dealt with knowing that a dark wizard is coming after him for his blood. While still ignorant to his heritage, he knows he must fight to save himself and his friends. But not only is Lazarus a problem, but dealing with Albus Severus Potter is one too.
1. The Next Year

**Jude Porter and the Lightning Stone**

Lightning blasted through the dark clouds, illuminating the pale blue eyes that watched it intently. It broke the air so powerfully as the thunder rumbled through the night. "Lord Lazarus?" The blond turned to his subordinate, raising an eyebrow lazily.

"What is it?" He turned his gaze back to the dark sky and watched another crack of light stretch through the sky.

The masked man cleared his throat uncomfortably, "What will be our next move? The Porter boy still lives and we have not gotten his blood."

Lazarus glared at him flatly, "Mentions of our failures will not get you in my good favors." Before the man could amend his comment, he shook his head and began speaking again, "Jude seems to have some elements on his side that gives him the advantage. I should've known since he is his descendant. Even his father had it. However…"

His eyes were illuminated by the lightning and his new scheme, "We'll just have to find another element to beat him at."

…

If there was one thing Jude didn't get about the Wizarding world, it was why they stayed away from muggle things. Muggles weren't bad at all and neither were the devices they used all the time such as smart phones and music players. Wizards didn't even write with pens or mechanical pencils. They didn't watch T.V. with regular channels.

Don't get him wrong; the Wizarding world was amazing, they just really needed to get with the times. And by that, he meant they should actually get a T.V. since he got bored without Emma and James.

He had missed the two over the summer. He used Hestia to send the two letters, but sometimes he had nothing to write and just got bored again.

Neville would teach him more things about the Wizarding world he didn't know of at first. Hannah taught him many spells and charms that the professors never told them about. When both were busy, Jude would spend time on his broom stick, practicing catching the snitch.

Now he floated on his broom, one arm over his head to block out the harsh rain pouring down on him. He gazed at the lightning that stuck miles away, "It hasn't let up since last week. I hope it doesn't rain this much when school starts."

"Jude!" The blue eyed boy glanced down, seeing Hannah at his room window. "Get back inside. It's raining too hard for you to practice."

Jude sighed, nodding. He dropped down, dismounting from his broom. He ran inside, soaking wet and went up to his room. Hannah shook her head, throwing a towel on the boy's head and drying his dripping hair, "Honestly, Jude, I don't know why you thought it was a good idea to go out there. You'll catch your death flying on your broomstick outside."

"Sorry, Hannah," The boy mumbled from beneath his towel. "James said that quidditch matches don't let up unless something big happens in the school, so that means I have to get used to this weather if I'm going to play."

Hannah frowned at him, narrowing her eyes, "Did James also tell you we were going to his house for a gathering? If you get sick, you're not going to get to go and neither will I."

"Aw, Hannah," Jude gave her puppy dog eyes behind his glasses that's lens were covered in water droplets. "You don't have to take care of me if I get sick. I can take care of myself just like I used to. Besides, the cold doesn't bother me. I'm usually warm, see…"

He held out his hand, gesturing for her to take it. Hannah gave him a skeptic and put her hand in his. She blinked, staring at the appendage in disbelief when nothing but warmth radiated onto her palm.

He grinned, taking off his glasses with his free hand, "See, I told you. I'm immune to the cold, and I don't exactly mind the heat either."

Hannah sighed, releasing his hand. She crossed her arms, keeping her hard gaze on him, "Still, that doesn't excuse you. It's raining harshly and something could happen to you whether you're immune to the cold or not. Heavens knows how many people get struck by lightning in a storm like this."

"It's a powerful element, Jude," Neville spoke as he walked up to them. His lips held a smile but his eyes conveyed his seriousness, "You always have to watch out for lightning in storms as bad as these. No one ever really survives after being hit by lightning."

Jude nodded solemnly, "I understand. I'll be more careful when I'm out there."

"That's all we ask," Hannah smiled, ruffling the towel that still lay on his head. "Now take a shower. We're going to the Potters in an hour or so. It shouldn't take us long if we use the Floo Network or if we apparate there."

"You sure Jude will be able to handle that?" Neville asked as he and his wife turned their stares to the immensely confused boy. He put on a reassuring smile, "They're means of traveling, Jude. The Floo Network works through the fire place. Apparating is like disappearing from one place to another. You'll learn about it more when you're older."

Jude smiled slightly, nodding. He hated being the one person who didn't know anything about magic. "I think I'll go take that shower now." He made to move upstairs before Neville's hand on his shoulder stopped him. He turned around, gazing the older male questioningly.

Neville frowned, "Jude, remember what I said about lightning. I know you like quidditch, but with this type of weather, you need to be careful. It really is the strongest element in the world and could kill you in a second."

Jude gazed at him, wondering what all the fuss was about. He knew lightning was dangerous, but to him it never was. He could stare at it all day, knowing it wouldn't touch him. He sometimes would stay up all night when he lived with Piers just so he could see the bolt of light. That also had nothing to do with the fact that he couldn't sleep with heavy rain pouring on him. Merlin, he hated Piers and he certainly didn't miss the room under the hold in the roof.

He grinned reassuringly, "Lightning's strong and all, but it's not stronger than fire, is it?"


	2. The Potters

**Chapter 2**

Jude never really got the whole wizards' way of traveling. Muggles' way? sure. Cars were easy to drive in and comfortable since they sat more than two people. But wizards and witches didn't seem to know how to use those and instead used other means.

Now Jude stood on his best friend's lawn, trying desperately to hold in his breakfast as Hannah rubbed his back sympathetically, "It'll pass, Jude. It happens to everyone when they first apparate."

Jude could barely hear her over the ringing in his ears that served to cause him more nausea than before. He felt the saliva on his cheeks loosen and knew he was going to empty his stomach's contents.

"Oi, Jude. You alright?" The glasses wearing boy paused, feeling his stomach lurch unpleasantly. He lifted his gaze up to the Potters' front door and saw James gazing back at him with slight concern.

He stared confusedly before grinning, completely forgetting his nausea episode, "James!" He ran up to him, pointing at the other boy's face, "What's with the glasses?"

James flinched, blushing slightly before pointing at his friend as well, "Oi, shouldn't I ask you the same thing?"

Jude laughed, holding out his hand. James broke out into a grin as well as they did their secret handshake. The blue eyed boy scratched his head, grinning still, "It's good to see you again, James."

"You too, Jude," James grinned back.

Jude moved his gaze behind his friend and gulped when he noticed a glaring Harry Potter, "O-oh, hello Mr. Potter."

Harry continued to glare at him with his arms crossed. He looked deadly and Jude could feel himself dying a bit inside. He blinked when he felt a hand on his head ruffle his hair. He glanced up, seeing Neville's reassuring smile directed at him. He let himself smile at the man, relaxing his tense shoulders.

Neville gave Harry a friendly smile, "Hello, Harry. It's good to see you again." He greeted him like he would any other time, but Jude could hear the hard edge in his tone. He felt happy that someone cared for him enough to go against his own friend.

Harry sent Jude one last dirty look before letting the Longbottoms and Jude in, "It's good to see you too, Neville. You as well, Hannah. How have you guys been?"

Jude smiled at Hannah when she rubbed his shoulder reassuringly before leaving to the dining room with Neville, Harry and Ginny. The blue eyed boy turned his gaze to the other youngsters there. He grinned, holding out his hand, "Hi, I'm Jude Porter. I'm a friend of James'."

The red haired girl, who he assumed was Lily, smiled back and shook his hand, "Nice to meet you, Jude. I'm Lily; James' younger sister."

Albus stared blankly before shaking the boy's hand as well, "I'm Albus; James' younger brother."

The boy in front of him really was an exact replica of Harry. James himself looked like Harry when it came to his facial features, but the green eyes were the only thing that made a difference in their appearance. That, and Jude didn't think James was a wanker.

Jude took his hand away, keeping his smile on, "So, you're going into Hogwarts this year?"

Albus nodded stiffly, "Yes."

Merlin, it was so hard to hold a conversation with someone this boring. "What house do you think you'll get in?"

"Gryffindor," Was the slow reply.

James patted his friend's shoulder, helping him walk past the tense conversation. He called over his shoulder, "We all want to be in Gryffindor, but that doesn't mean we won't be in other houses as well. You might be in Slytherin or something."

Jude flinched when he heard the younger boy's sharp intake of breath. Albus ran out of the room, "Dad! James said I'm going to be in Slytherin. I don't want to be in Slytherin."

James rolled his eyes, snapping his fingers, "And just like that, I'm in trouble. It was nice knowing you, Jude."

Jude smiled sympathetically as they walked up the stairs. James led them into his room and Jude watched in awe as the posters moved with life. He had many posters of quidditch players and bands. The blue eyed boy as he stared at them; he never heard of any of these people. He'd have to ask James to listen to them later.

James stretched out his arms dramatically, "Welcome to my humble abode. This is where I sleep and get away from everything. You are the first person who I've actually brought in here. Usually, my family just barges in and tells me to do stuff."

Jude felt his stomach constrict uncomfortably. He didn't want to say that he never brought friends over to his old house either. He didn't have friends and he didn't think anyone would want to see the poor, pathetic little corner he called a room.

While he knew James loves his family deeply and that their situations differ from each other greatly, it's the fact that Jude understands what James is going through and doesn't judge him. The grass may be greener on the other side, but sometimes you have to notice whether it was cared for and nurtured or just fake.

James sat on his bed, gesturing for his friend to do the same. Jude followed and gazed around the room once more, "So what do you usually do for fun? I always seem to get bored with things too easily."

James shrugged, crossing his arms, "Nothing really. I get on the broom and practice a lot. I'm gonna try out for the quidditch team this year. I really wanna make it."

"You will, James," Jude grinned. "You're sure better than me at quidditch. I don't really get how I made the team and you didn't."

James laughed, grabbing him in a headlock and giving him a noogie, "It's 'cause you're special, you wanker."

Jude laughed with him, throwing him off. He fixed his untamable hair, speaking to his friend, "So the glasses; why'd you have to get them?"

James was silent for a beat, pushing the glasses up his nose. He sighed, frowning, "I didn't want to tell you over the letters because I didn't want you to feel guilty."

Jude felt his chest cave in as the other boy continued, "My parents don't know this, but apparently, even though the cruciatus curse only lasted for a minute, give or take, it was enough damage. My body shut down a bit in shock so my eyes weren't able to adjust fully. I had to get glasses. Mum just said it was 'cause of Dad's genes since my gramps had glasses too."

Jude shut his eyes tightly, willing the sting of unshed tears to go away. James said it wasn't his fault. He and Emma reassured him many times that they brought themselves into the mess because they were his friends.

He inhaled shakily, swallowing thickly, "'M sorry."

James shook his head, putting on a small smile. He patted his friend's shoulder reassuringly, "Like I said; it's not your fault so don't feel guilty over it. Now come on," He stood from his bed and walked towards the door. "Let's get some food. I'm starving over here."

Jude cleared his throat, feeling the mucus put up a fight before it went down and followed his friend. Now he'd have to have a stare down with an ever angry Potter but luckily, he had James, Neville and Hannah on his side. With them there, he felt safe.


	3. Newcomers

**Chapter 3**

Jude yawned as he stood in front of the entrance for platform 9 ¾. Neville was beside him, giving Hannah a kiss goodbye. The summer went by quickly and the first day of school had finally arrived.

After saying goodbye to his wife, Neville turned to the younger boy, ruffling his hair, "I'll be getting on the bus now. I'll see you at school, Jude."

Jude nodded tiredly, hugging Neville around the waist. He smiled as the man walked through the entrance. He turned his tired blue eyes to Hannah, "Bye, Hannah. I'll see you when break starts."

Hannah smiled back, kissing his hair, "You better. Make sure to owl me in case anything goes wrong. We don't want a repeat of last year, now do we?"

"Merlin no," Jude breathed, shaking his head. Unfortunately, he knew that would be too good to be true.

Hannah smiled once more, "Alright, Jude. I'll see you when break starts. Have a good time." She patted his cheek and walked away.

Jude yawned, staying in his spot by the entrance for two minutes before he finally saw the Potter family. He grinned happily, still wondering if he could go back to sleep, "Hey, James." He smiled politely at the others, "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Hi, Albus and Lily."

Lily was clutching Harry's sleeve, her eyes full of tears. Harry sighed, rubbing her hand soothingly, "It won't be long and you'll be going to Hogwarts too."

"Next year," Lily sniffed, "I want to go now."

Albus simply ignored Jude's greeting, frowning and almost stomping his feet, "I won't! I won't be in Slytherin!"

"James, give it a rest," Ginny sighed, getting tired of the same mantra Albus had been belting out.

James rolled his eyes before putting on a grin for his brother, "I only said he might be. There's nothing wrong with that. He might be in Slyth-" He caught his mother's eye and fell silent.

Jude patted his friend's shoulder sympathetically, "Come on, James. Let's get a move on."

James bit his lip, grinding his teeth before grinning and following Jude through the barrier. After they entered, they made their way towards the train before they stopped abruptly. In front of them was a blue haired boy kissing what seemed to be Victoire Weasley.

Jude gaped with James, staring at the couple with wide eyes. James grinned, "Hey, Teddy. What are you doing?"

The couple finally pulled apart, gazing at the two teen boys. Teddy scratched the back of his head, laughing, "I'm just seeing her off, James. Now go away."

James laughed as well, putting his trunk and owl on the train. He ran back towards the entrance, putting his trolley back and leaving Jude to stand by himself fearfully. He smiled uneasily at them, "He-hello."

Victoire smiled back at him, settling his nerves, "Teddy, look it's the boy James' always talking about." She put her hand on his shoulder and he felt his cheeks warm with a blush. "This is Jude Porter. He's the first year who made the quidditch team and won them the cup."

Teddy, the blue haired boy, grinned, holding out his hand, "Nice to meet you, Jude. I'm Edward Lupin, but you can call me Teddy. I'm sort of a cousin of James'. His dad's my godfather."

Jude chuckled weakly, shaking the older boy's hand, "He's got a lot of cousins." It seemed he'd only met half of them too.

Teddy laughed, helping the younger boy put his trunk and owl onto the train, "It's a big family, but it's a loving one as well. You got any cousins, Jude?"

Jude shook his head, helping Teddy, "Nope. I don't know who my parents are. They died when I was two and no family of mine claimed me so I assume I have none."

Teddy smiled sympathetically, "Oh, I'm sorry to ask, Jude. My parents died when I was younger as well. I live with my grandmother but I go over to the Potters' house a lot. They're like my second family."

"It's okay," The younger boy shrugged, making sure all of his stuff was on board. "I'm sorry to hear about your parents as well."

Before Teddy could reply, Jude felt someone tackle him around the waist. He grunted in surprise before turning around to the culprit. He beamed, hugging the person back, "Emma, it's so good to see you."

Emma giggled, pulling away, "It's good to see you too, Jude." She glanced around, "Where's James? Isn't he with you?"

"Don't know," Jude mumbled, gazing around with his friend. "He went back to tell his sister something a little while ago."

Victoire smiled at Emma, "You must be the girl James' always talking about. Emma Thorne, right?"

Emma smiled shyly, nodding, "Y-yes. You must be Victoire Weasley; James' cousin."

"That I am," The blonde nodded. Her smile widened, "I forget to thank you guys for helping Gryffindor win the house cup. Though it was terribly dangerous for you three to do that, it was pretty brilliant how you stood up to him. How'd you get to know all those spells?"

As Emma rattled off on how she studied spells daily, Jude questioned Teddy on something that had been nagging him mentally, "Is your hair naturally blue?"

Teddy laughed, shaking his head, "No. My mum was a metamorphmagus. I inherited from her. I can change any feature on my face, but I like the light blue hair."

"Victoire likes it too," James commented wickedly as he finally approached them. "She's always running her hands through it."

Teddy narrowed his eyes at him before he smirked and shrugged, "I wouldn't be saying it like that if I were you, James. Sooner or later, you're gonna have a girl who will love to run her hands through that messy hair of yours. You too, Jude."

Both boys blushed causing the blue haired young man to laugh. "Alright. I'll see you on break." He walked over to Victoire, saying bye to Emma who smiled and walked back to her friends.

The red haired girl raised a confused eyebrow at the boys' red faces, "What's wrong with you two? Are you sick?"

"Let's get on the train," James squeaked embarrassedly, pushing them onto the train. They soon found an empty seats and shut the glass door. He sighed in relief, feeling his blush die down.

Jude whined in protest when James sat next to him. The Potter boy shook his head with a grin, sitting next to Emma to let his friend finally sleep.

Jude slept throughout the whole train ride, not once waking up no matter how loud James or Emma was. He only woke up when the train pulled to its destination, stopping abruptly. The blue eyed boy flew off the seat with a startled yelp, hitting the floor.

Emma giggled while James laughed at his friend's disgruntled face. After pushing James' face away from his, Jude grabbed his things along with the other two. They ran out to the station and waited for the carriages as the first years were docked on their boats.

Jude grinned in anticipation; he had wanted to go back to Hogwarts ever since he left months ago. He turned to the carriages and blinked slowly. He pointed at the animal, "Hey, aren't those supposed to be invisible or something? That's what everyone says."

Emma nodded solemnly as James bit his lip; they could see the thestral too. "They're only visible to people who have seen and accepted the death of the person passing." They frowned; Professor Lamb's death didn't affect them much, but it was hard being reminded of what had happened.

James pulled on their arms insistently, "Come on. We shouldn't let that bring us down. We've got a whole school year ahead of us."

Jude scratched the back of his head, nodding, "Right." They jumped onto the carriage that was closest to them.

It began to move before stopping once more. Jude watched Louis, Victoire and what he assumed was Dominique board the carriage as well. He smiled, "Hello again, Victoire. Hey, Louis." He held his hand out to Dominique as the carriage began to move once again, "Hello, I'm Jude Porter."

Dominique smiled, shaking his hand, "I know who are. I went to quidditch games after Louis told me how good you are."

Victoire raised her hand with a small smirk, "I was still a little irritated that Ravenclaw lost and that they were disqualified."

Louis stared at her incredulously, "Your seeker tried to steal the snitch from Porter's hand after he was knocked out and falling to his death."

"Not death," Jude winced, holding his hands up to pacify them. "I'm fine. I was just hit with a bludger."

He froze as Dominique stared at his right hand intently. He cringed inwardly when he realized that was the hand with the scar he had gotten from Lazarus. He closed his hand and sat back quietly.

James sighed, kicking his legs out, "Look at that; you weirded out my best friend. Good job, guys."

Victoire rolled her eyes as Louis finally gave greetings to everyone. They ride was then filled with Emma, Victoire and Dominique talking about the new school year.

Almost half an hour later, they were at the entrance of Hogwarts. Grinning, Jude grabbed his belongings and ran with his friends inside. Another hour later, they were finally sat at the Great Hall, waiting for the first years to enter.

Jude noticed Professor Flitwick had now taken the Headmaster spot. He remembered reading in his letter that Professor McGonagall had retired. He blinked when he saw Professor Alexander start the sorting ceremony.

All the first years ambled in, looking anxious and scared. Jude remembered feeling that way last year; he was at least glad he wasn't as ignorant as he was last year and felt better in his skin now.

The sorting hat sang a song for the new students. He clapped along with everyone when it ended. Professor Alexander spoke after the applause ended, "When I call your name, you will put the hat on and be sorted into your new houses." She read off the first name, "Andrews, Micah."

A blond haired boy walked up to the stool meekly, sitting down. Emilie placed the hat on his head gently, patting the boy's shoulder for good measure. "HUFFLEPUFF!" The hat yelled.

The Hufflepuff house burst into applause louder than the others. Once the excitement died down, Emilie read off the next name, "Allen, Sabrina."

The girl went up to the stool, almost cringing when the hat was placed on her head. "RAVENCLAW!"

"Banner, Bernadotte."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Barrow, John."

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Calderon, Bartholomew."

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Cates, Donovan."

"SLYTHERIN!"

The three watched Professor Alexander rattle of the names. Jude wasn't paying much attention until James nudged him when the professor read, "Malfoy, Scorpius."

The blond, pale boy walked up to the stool, sitting down. The hat touched his head for a minute before shouting, "SLYTHERIN!"

Jude turned to James questioningly. The brown eyed boy grinned a bit, "Scorpius is the son of Draco Malfoy. He used to be my dad's enemy in school, but now they're just acquaintances. My Uncle Ron says to watch out for him but I don't think he's that bad."

"Moss, Michelle."

A dark skinned girl ran up to the stool excitedly. The hat touched her head. "HUFFLEPUFF!"

More names rattled off. He paused when he heard, "Potter, Albus."

He watched James' brother walk to the stool, his knees shaking. The hat touched his head and it sat there for a long while.

It finally shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Albus looked immensely relieved as he walked towards the Gryffindor table. His pale face was finally gaining some color. The table roared cheerfully for getting another Potter. James rolled his eyes, tapping his fingers to his hand. Jude didn't even bother to clap.

Names, names and names. "Stokes, Whitney."

The hat yelling, "RAVENCLAW!"

Then, "Stone, Bella."

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Names. Then finally, "Weasley, Molly."

A red haired girl walked up to the stool. She looked a bit more relaxed than most of the first years. The hat touched her head, shouting, "HUFFLEPUFF!"

"Weasley, Rose."

Another red haired girl went up to the stool. After the hat was placed on her head, it shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Another name or so was called before it ended. Professor Flitwick gave a small speech, welcoming the students, old and new. Soon, Jude was able to feast on the food he had been drooling over for a few days.

An hour later, he was sleeping like a log in his dorm with the same roommates from last year.


	4. Classes

**Chapter 4**

Jude stared at his schedule as he walked down the corridor with James and Emma. Emma was dragging both boys by their sleeves, wanting to be the first one there to get a good seat in the class. While Jude's and James' grades were average last year, Emma was one of the highest scoring student in the first year group. Many teachers were impressed by her.

James groaned, trying to fix his tie that he put on haphazardly before Emma started dragging them, "Come on, Ems. It's not like we're late or anything. Slow down a bit, will you?"

Emma ignored them and continued on down the corridor. Jude titled his head, regarding his schedule, "So we have the same classes? That seems a bit dull."

"After Easter holidays, we can choose two or more additional classes like Ancient Runes or Arithmancy," Emma supplied, still trying to keep up her pace.

James nodded, looking at his schedule as well, "Yeah. I heard we also got another Charms teacher since Flitwick is Headmaster and we got a new DADA professor since…well, you know."

Jude nodded solemnly in remembrance. Professor Gordon Lamb was a good teacher, but he supposed he wasn't a good man. After all, if Jude had stayed ignorant to what was happening between him and Lazarus, Professor Lamb would've taken and killed him whenever he had the chance.

They finally made it to Charms class. They did have a new teacher. Her name was Denise Lively. She was blonde, tall, and in the Hufflepuff house. She only taught a bit differently from Flitwick as she relied more on the book and demonstrating by herself. They only learned the movements of one charm.

The other professors were the same, teaching and personality wise. For Herbology, Neville took them all to the greenhouse so they could encounter more plants. For Transfiguration, Professor Walton showed them how to turn a beetle into a bug. Jude wished he knew how to do Transfiguration when he lived with Piers. There were too many insects he made friends with over the 11 years he was there.

Professor Young seemed like the only one who was a bit saddened by Professor Lamb's death. Jude assumed it was because they were from the same house and got along easily from what he had seen when he would see the interacting teachers during dinner. She taught them how to make a few potions though they were not able to make them until next week.

Professor Alexander was nice and cheerful as always, eagerly going through the whole layout for the rest of the year. While she was one of Jude's favorite teachers, he realized soon that History of Magic was not going to be his best subject even though it was one of his favorite classes.

After lunch, they finally had DADA and were face-to-face with the new Professor. He was tall with light brown hair and a scar going over his left eyebrow. He smiled at the students, pulling at his collar, "So. Hello, students. I'm Professor Joseph Miles. I'm the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher since your last teacher was, unfortunately, KIA. Now…"

He began to go through the layout for class, gaining much attention from the students. Jude tilted his head, regarding the new professor. He was young. He looked about in his late 20s. That didn't necessarily concern him. What he was concerned about was that scar and they way he almost sneered when he mentioned Professor Lamb.

Jude shook his head, packing his belongings when class ended; he couldn't afford to think those thoughts. While he was preparing himself for anything Lazarus would throw at him, he really hoped, prayed even, that he would finally get an average school year like any other student.

At dinner, Emma was pouring over her work while eating. James would see how much she was paying attention by stealing some of her food. Not once did she even think about stabbing him with her fork.

"You think the DADA professor is alright?" Jude asked, taking a bite of his mash potatoes. "I don't think I can form an opinion yet."

James nodded in agreement, sticking a spoon to his nose, "I agree with you. He does seem a little young though. And that scar gives me the heebie-jeebies." He presented a spoon to the other boy.

Jude took the utensil and stuck it to his nose, "I don't know." He shrugged, looking down at the silver spoon. "The scar is something I hope we can look into."

Emma knocked the spoons off their noses, "Don't play with your utensils. That's unsanitary." She closed her book with a sigh, frowning. "I do think Professor Miles is suspicious, but we shouldn't jump to such drastic conclusions."

"Right," The boys nodded in agreement, going back to their food.

It was silent for a moment before Emma whacked James' arm with her book, glaring at him, "James, you ate almost all of my food."

James snickered, blocking her punches, "Hey, hey, everyone knows food is more important than school work. You would've noticed I was eating your food if you were paying attention to it."

"James," Emma hissed, pinching his cheek.

James kept himself nonchalant, ignoring the slight pain on his face. "Food is the greatest thing we have. Treasure it like you would someone you love."

Jude laughed, passing some of his food to the red head. Emma smiled gratefully while the boys high fived each other when she wasn't looking. The blue eyed boy blinked when he noticed Albus glaring at him from his seat which was far from his own. He rolled his eyes, smiling back at his friends.

"Porter!" Jude stiffened as Carlos glomped him. From the corner of his eye, he could see James glaring at him and Leon and Jared who came as well.

He laughed uneasily, disengaging himself from the other boy, "Hey, Curry. What are you doing over here?"

Carlos grinned widely, grabbing Jude's hand by his fingers, "Nothing much."

Jude swallowed, wanting to snatch his hand back. Carlos had the habit of staring at his scar almost every time they saw each other. He didn't settle down unless James told him something.

He turned, hoping James would say something. He watched in confusion as James glared harshly at Leon who was chatting with Emma. Emma was smiling at the other boy, happy someone was interested in school work unlike her best friends. Leon was leaning his head on his hand, smiling at the red head.

Jude laughed to himself, not noticing Carlos pulling his hand to show Jared. He knew something like this was going to happen sooner or later between the two. James made it a bit too obvious, and it was a mystery how much Emma was so oblivious.


	5. Qudditch Tryouts

**Chapter 5**

The second week of school marked the start of quidditch tryouts. Hufflepuff had gone first, Ravenclaw second, Gryffindor third and Slytherin fourth. Jude was just excited; he had really wanted to James tryout for the team. He knew his friend was way better than him which is why he protested on being on the team at first.

As of now, since some of the quidditch members graduated, they needed two chasers and a beater. Jude knew James was trying to become a chaser, so he hoped that spot went to him.

When he got to the pitch that morning, he was greeted by Louis, Olivia, and Kelli who were also in their uniforms. Olivia grinned, ruffling his hair, "There he is; the best seeker in Hogwarts."

Jude blushed modestly causing Kelli to chuckle and Louis to give him an affectionate noogie. He smiled at his captain, "So, how many people are trying out?"

Olivia leaned on her broomstick, pondering, "Last I checked, over 10 people. Only 3 were trying out for the beater position, so we're focusing more on the chaser position. Louis gets final pick for his partner anyways."

Louis nodded, throwing his arm around the smaller male, "I'm gonna miss Fred. We were a good pair, him and I. I don't think we can ever replace that." He glanced at the entrance of the pitch and grinned, "Here they come."

Jude turned his gaze as well and grinned when he saw James walking in the front. The remaining three players stood by their captain as she began speaking, "Alright everybody. Anyone who is trying out for chaser, stand with Kelli. Anyone trying out for beater, stand with Louis. Anyone who is trying out for substitute seeker, stand with Jude. Substitute keepers, come with me. The four of us will see if you will be able to be on the team. If you are trying out for more than one position, tell the team player first and you will go on ahead and tryout for both positions."

Two people went to Louis who took them to the end of the pitch. James went up to Kelli with two others. No one stepped up with Jude or Olivia. They didn't feel offended; they felt good knowing they had their position securely to themselves.

"Now-" Olivia began again before she was cut off.

"Wait, wait!" Jude and James stared in shock as Emma and Leon ran onto the pitch, panting lightly. "I'm so sorry I'm late," The red head said apologetically. Leon nodded in agreement.

Olivia pursued her lips, "Chasers go with Kelli, beaters go with Louis, sub seekers go with Jude, and keepers with me. If you're trying out for more than one position, tell the player first."

Emma and Leon nodded in relief. Emma stood next to James, smiling at him while he frowned at Leon who told Louis he was trying out for chaser and beater.

Jude and Olivia flew into the air on their brooms and watched as the others trying out lifted themselves in the air as well. Leon had gone first, holding the bat for beaters. He and Louis were able to keep the fake bludger in the air for a while before they missed it and it fell to the ground. Louis was at least impressed.

The rest of the beaters went on to do the same thing with Louis while Kelli had the chasers on her. Like Jude predicted, James was a natural and scored more points than the others. He was surprised that Emma came in second and Leon came in third.

After watching for an hour or so, the tryouts were over. Before dismissing them, Olivia told them she was happy that they tried out and would know the results in a few days. Both Jude and James walked up to Emma before heading to the locker room.

"Why didn't you tell us you were trying out?" James demanded weakly. His knuckles were white as he gripped his broomstick tightly. "We could've practiced together over the summer if you told us."

Emma frowned, putting her broomstick in the supply closet, "Sorry. I didn't think I was going to try out. I just practiced over the summer and I didn't really get the chance to actually get on the broom since my dad didn't want people to see me flying. I didn't think I'd be any good so I didn't tell you."

"But you were good," Jude smiled and patted her arm. "You almost beat James too and he's been flying longer than both of us combined. We understand that you weren't confident, but we still would've supported you."

Emma sighed, "I know, I'm sorry. Like I said, I didn't want to try out anyways."

James furrowed his brow confusedly, "Then why did you?"

"I told her to." They all turned to Leon's voice as he came to drop his broom off as well. Emma was smiling at him, Jude simply raised an eyebrow at his response and James glared at him heatedly. "I was gonna try out and she told me that she was practicing flying as well. I told why not try out together."

Jude glanced at James who was gritting his teeth. The brown eyed boy threw the team broom in the closet before stalking off to the locker room. Jude smiled apologetically before rushing off after James.

He found him in the locker room, changing into his school clothes. Jude could tell he was angry by how he was throwing his other clothes on the floor and how he got so easily frustrated with the buttons on the shirt.

"James-"

"She didn't tell us," James muttered through his gritting teeth. "She didn't think to tell us because she thought we would judge her or something. Why the hell would she think that? Does she not know who my mother is? How could she-" He cut himself off and clenched his fists tightly.

Jude smiled sadly, putting his hand on James shoulder, "I know. I wish she would've told us too. I honestly can't believe she told Adams instead of us."

"It's like she doesn't trust us," James grumbled as he finally got his shirt buttoned. "What does Adams have that we don't?"

"Good grades," Jude joked.

He grinned when he saw James try to fight the small grin trying to burst from his lips. He laughed, finally hearing James laugh with him. He snickered, holding out his hand. His friend grinned and they did their secret handshake.

Jude changed into his school clothes as James sat on the bench waiting for him, "I think we should wait till Emma says something to us. We have to show her we trust her and that she should trust us."

James nodded, frowning, "I think the only reason she feels like she can trust Adams is because he actually takes school seriously."

"We would too," Jude stated as he buttoned his shirt. "It's hard to try and concentrate on school when you're wondering when a mad man is going to strike you down."

"Exactly," James nodded in agreement. "And besides, we still have above average grades. It's not our fault we're not geniuses."

Jude tightened his tie, smiling, "Like I said, she knows she can trust us. Let's just give her some time. We can't just jump to conclusions because she chose to tell Adams and not us."

"Alright," James sighed, walking out of the locker rooms with his friend.

…

A week later, the new team members were announced. James and Emma were the new chasers with Kelli. Simon Boone, a 5th year, was the new beater with Louis. Leon was the alternate chaser and beater for the team. James was happy that the boy didn't beat him in taking that spot.


	6. Storms

**Chapter 6**

Though the storms had let up during the first month of school, they immediately came back with a vengeance. The halls and almost everywhere else was packed since no students wanted to go out in the pouring, freezing rain. Jude had no problem, but he didn't want his clothes and papers to get soaked.

Quidditch practice, like James had told him, didn't let up. Especially since Olivia was Oliver Woods' daughter. They both loved quidditch to death and nothing would stop them from playing. Jude seemed a bit worried after hearing that.

Jude and James had to practically drag Emma out of the common room after she adamantly refused to go out for practice in the storm. James told her that she had to go since she was now on the quidditch team. Jude knew he was doing it for payback since she didn't tell them she was trying out in the first place.

When they got to the pitch, Olivia stood out in the rain, soaking wet and ready for an all out practice. Jude could see everyone else shivering, but he couldn't even feel the snippy wind on him like the others.

"Alright," Olivia called over the harsh rain. "I know what most of you are thinking, 'Why the bloody hell are we practicing in this weather?' Well, my dad always told me that quidditch waits for no man, so we are going to do as much training as we can. You lot ready?"

Jude thought he heard Simon sobbing next to him but said nothing of it. He would just blame the rain anyways. He nodded firmly, mounting his broomstick and shot off into the air. The others were right behind him.

Practice wore on for two hours before Olivia took pity on them and called it to an end. The only ones who actually got through practice without messing up horribly in the rain were Jude, Olivia, Louis and James. They were the only ones who seemed used to the weather. Emma just had a hard time gripping the wet quaffle. James always tried to help her, but since Leon wasn't practicing as much as the others, he went ahead and helped her.

Jude watched the others shiver and hug themselves tightly as they finally made it to the locker room. James growled at his friend through his chattering teeth, "H-h-h-ow the h-h-ell-l ar-are you not c-c-c-cold?"

Jude smiled, shrugging, "Natural immunity, I guess. Weather never bothered me before. That's why Piers had me in the room with the hole in the ceiling. He said since I never get hot or cold, I shouldn't have a problem with that."

"That's disgusting," James grunted, peeling his soaked shirt off. "I don't get how anyone would do that."

Jude slipped off his shirt which was equally soaked. He pulled out his school shirt and put it on, "Yeah well, it's how I knew I had immunity to the cold. That, and that time he threw in a snow bank and didn't let me inside the house till the next morning."

"He's a horrible man, and I hope he gets what's coming to him," James stated, pulling off his trousers that clung to his legs like a second skin.

"Thank you," Jude smiled, buckling his belt after he too got rid of his tight quidditch trousers. "I think Neville and Hannah said that once or twice."

"They should," James said, putting his back pack over his shoulder. "Now come on. We should get to class. I really want to just knock out. The rain is soothing."

Jude nodded, walking with him out of the locker room, "That's true but when is it gonna stop raining? These storms aren't letting up and I kinda don't want to play the first game in this storm. Besides, Neville and Hannah told me to watch out for lightning, especially when I'm playing quidditch."

"I wanna send my mum a letter," James mumbled as they waited for Emma. "I don't want to send Athena out in this weather though. The letter would get ruined and Athena would come back worse for wear. I can't do that to her."

Jude nodded once more in agreement, "I can't send Hestia in this storm either. Neville said he'd find a way to give Hannah our letters."

"Jace shouldn't deal with this either." They turned to Emma who had just come out of the locker room. She smiled at them, "My parents understand why I can't send any letters, and I care about Jace too much to have him deal with this storm."

"Right," James nodded. "Now let's go." He halted when Emma tugged on his sleeve. He glanced at her questioningly, "What? What is it?" At Emma's glances at the boy's locker room door, his lips twitched irritably, "No, nuh-uh. We are not waiting in the frostbiting cold for Adams."

"Please?" Emma tugged on his hand pleadingly. Jude could see the blush on James' already red cheeks. "He waits for me, the least I can do is wait for him."

James gritted his teeth angrily. Jude didn't know if it was from the cold weather or the fact that he was just really beginning to hate Leon. The brown eyed boy snatched his hand out of the red heads, almost hissing, "You can wait for him all you want with Jude. I'm going to class so I don't die of hypothermia."

He stormed off with his two friends watching him. Jude smiled slightly, "He doesn't really like the cold. You're lucky he let me stay here with you. He knows the cold doesn't bother me."

Emma sighed exasperatedly, rubbing her eyes with her glove covered hands, "I don't get why he gets mad all the time now." She turned to her friend with a raised eyebrow, "Do you think he's going through puberty?"

"That's mean," Jude said, feeling his traitorous lips twitch with amusement. "You know he'd never say that about you. He's just…going through some things." Going through some feelings, he thought to himself.

Emma waved her hand, smiling, "Sorry, sorry. I guess I really don't know what's going through his mind."

Jude shook his head, shoving his hands in his pockets, "You really don't. I know what's going on but I don't really understand it just yet."

James was developing feelings for Emma; that he knew. He also knew that James didn't know what these feelings of love and jealously were which was why he was lashing out so much. The sad thing was that he knew James couldn't go to his dad because he wouldn't listen; he couldn't go to his mom because he didn't feel comfortable yet and he couldn't go to his own best friends because Jude didn't fully understand and he most certainly couldn't go to Emma.

As Leon walked out of the locker room, conversing with Emma, Jude followed them, running his hand through his soaking wet mop of unruly hair. He felt terribly bad for James and hoped he could get through this somehow.

This was too much drama for 12 year olds.


	7. Lightning Stone

**Chapter 7**

Jude held in his yawn as much as he could, not wanting Professor Miles to put him on the spot. It was still raining harshly outside, pounding against the window of the classroom and lulling him to sleep. No offense to Professor Miles, who was really into his lectures on dark creatures, but he really wanted to just close his eyes and sleep the rest of the day.

Miles suddenly stopped, glancing outside when lightning struck past, "See that, children? That is one of the strongest elemental forces in the world; that and darkness."

Emma raised her hand quickly after that. She began speaking after he nodded at her, "There is a spell for lightning, but you can't exactly use it for battle. How is that stronger than any other spell if it doesn't damage your opponent?"

"Excellent question, Ms. Thorne," Miles grinned, going to the chalk board. He began to draw an ugly looking circle and proceeded to write what he was saying, "While the lightning spell is not an offensive or defensive charm, there is something for lightning."

He pointed at the off circle, "The lightning stone. It's used to generate all the lightning produced in the world. With it, one can kill almost anyone with its power. The user can generate as much power as they want in the stone; to paralyze or to kill."

"That's just a myth," Leon spoke up, twirling his quill in his hands. "My dad says there's no such thing as elemental stones."

Miles chuckled, "Well, your father is wrong. I know that must be devastating to hear." He ignored Leon's sour glare. "It may be treated as a myth mostly because no one has found it in centuries. It is also the only element to have a stone. No others have had a stone other than lightning. That is why no one believes it."

Jude stared at the board inquisitively, pondering on the actual existence of the stone. Even if it was said to be a myth, that would mean someone found something like it, right?

…

Jude watched as James yet again glared at Leon who was too busy talking to Emma and vice versa. He sighed, leaning his head on his hand. He glanced at the red head who just laughed at something Leon said causing James' glare to become even harsher. When did Emma start talking to Adams anyway? She never said a word to him their first year in Hogwarts. What was different?

Frowning, he tugged on James' sleeve, trying to get the nagging feeling off his mind, "Hey, James." He was lucky he even got a glance from the other boy. "What do you think of the lightning stone?"

"It's a myth," Leon answered instead of James, breaking off his conversation with Emma. "I don't believe a word Professor Miles says anyways. He must be on something to be talking about something no one has even mentioned in years."

"No one asked you," James hissed almost hostilely. He turned back to his friend, fuming, "Anyways, I don't know if I believe in this whole lightning stone, but I can ask my aunt to check it out for me. You never know nowadays. They always said Voldemort wouldn't-oh Merlin, really, Emma?"

"Sorry."

Jude shook his head, tapping his chin thoughtfully, "Well, that's true. I mean, I don't think anyone was ready for Lazarus eit…Emma, really?"

"Sorry."

"Great," James grunted, stabbing his food. "Now we have two names we can't say in her presence. Oh well."

When Leon and Emma got back to talking, Jude smirked and leaned over to his friend, "Leon Adams."

James' knife almost went through his plate as he sneered at Jude, "Would you look at that? Now I have a name you can't say in my presence."


	8. First Game

**Chapter 8**

"Alright everyone," Olivia began as the team gathered in the locker room. Today marked the first game of quidditch; Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. Jude did not want to hear the same speech he heard the last two weeks concerning this game. She was like this last year, but last year he had Fred and Louis to amuse him. This year, he assumed Louis was just going to daydream away since he was leaning on his broom and gazing at Olivia with glassy eyes.

The captain cleared her throat, "Today is the first game for the houses. Like always, our first game is against Slytherin. Last year we won with a surprise attack. This year, we have no surprises. We're gonna have to win with everything we got. Are you with me?"

"Yeah!" Jude put as much vigor as he could into that shout. He knew that no one wanted to go out onto the pitch and deal with the pouring rain.

"Then let's get moving!" They followed Olivia out of the locker room and onto the pitch where they mounted their brooms and flew into the air. Leon was the only one who had to stay on the sidelines. Jude floated next to James, trying to gaze at all the students and teachers in the stands through the rain. He could feel his hands nervously shaking around his broom, but luckily, they weren't as bad as they were last year.

"_Let's get this match started,_" A 5th year Gryffindor boy spoke into the mic. He could barely hear him over the pounding rain. "_Today is the first match of the school year. We have Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. Last year, Gryffindor beat Slytherin by a land slide. Will the snakes beat the lions this year? We'll just have to wait and see._

"_On the Slytherin side, we have 7__th__ year Rachel Rockwell who is captain of the team and one of the chasers. 7__th__ year Ellis Flint and 5__th__ year Brady Chase are also the chasers. 6__th__ years Clarence Bastille and Brendan Solace are the beaters, 5__th__ Michael Craver is the keeper and 7__th__ year Shawn Christianson is the seeker._

"_On the Gryffindor side we have our wonderful captain and keeper; Olivia Wood. We have 5__th__ year Kelli Sharp, 2__nd__ year James Potter, and 2__nd__ year Emma Thorne who are our chasers. 4__th__ year Louis Weasley and 5__th__ year Simon Boone are the beaters. And last but not least, 2__nd__ year Jude Porter is our seeker._"

Jude waited for the ref, Professor Walton, to start the match before dodging out of the way as the chasers rushed past him. He mentally cursed when he realized he would never get to see how James and Emma played during a match since he had to watch for the snitch. He couldn't afford to be distracted, especially now since Shawn was glaring at him from across the pitch. He was probably still sore from their loss last year.

"_Potter easily maneuvered through the other team's chasers and bashed the quaffle through the hoop! That puts Gryffindor in the lead 10-0. We never doubted your skills, Potter._"

Jude grinned slightly at the commentary. He hoped no one doubted his friend's skills. He lifted himself higher, his gaze still scattering around the pitch for any sign of the golden ball.

He was almost jolted from his gazing when he heard the crowd burst into cheers. "_Would you look at that? Wood just did a Double Eight Loop and kept Gryffindor in the lead. Will these players never stop amazing us?_" The crowd cheered once more.

Jude wished he was a spectator at this moment. That would've been a sight to see. Unfortunately, he really had to keep his eyes peeled since Shawn was just behind him, waiting for him to see the snitch. This was going to be a little harder than last year.

Finally, after many goals and misses, the heavens above heard his prayers and whines, and he just barely saw the small, fluttering ball fly under Flint's feet. Without even sparing a glance at the Slytherin seeker, he shot off towards the snitch.

"_Porter has found the snitch. He seems to know exactly what he's doing and Christianson is just following his lead. Just like last time, boys. Who will win this year?_"

The snitch flew higher into the air, reminding him of what had happened last year. As he stretched his arm out towards it, he could see flashes of lightning and wondered briefly if they were going to strike him.

His fingers had just barely wrapped around the snitch when he felt himself lurch to the side abruptly. A flash of lightning flew past where he had just been flying. Before he could ponder on who had moved him out of the way, his eyes widened in terror when he saw where the lightning was headed.

"James!" He shouted, jumping off his broom and free falling towards his friend. He flattened his arms by his sides in hopes that he could reach the boy before the lightning did.

Jude watched in horror as James was struck by the lightning. The brown eyed boy was thrown off his broom with the quaffle falling from his arms. He caught James in his arms as they both plummeted towards the ground. He turned their bodies around so he could take the brunt of the fall and braced for impact.

He assumed it was his broom that caught him a few feet before they hit the floor. It had only helped in stopping the impact since they simply bounced up before falling on the pitch like they had first predicted.

The blue eyed boy held his friend tightly, hoping to Merlin that wasn't James' skin smoking right now. He opened his eyes slowly, watching as Olivia, Louis, Emma, Simon, and Kelli flew down, dismounting their brooms and running towards them. He couldn't hear them quite well with his heart pounding in his ears.

He breathed in disbelief when the snitch flew down towards him and landed right next to him. They had won the game, he thought before succumbing to the darkness that was inviting him.


	9. Infirmary

**Chapter 9**

The first thing Jude was aware of when he came to was the familiar, albeit blurry, ceiling of the infirmary. Next was the sobbing close to his bed. He didn't even feel the pain in his lower back until he tried to shift his body on its side. He winced, yelping when pain flared through his limbs.

"Jude," Emma's relieved, yet congested voice was heard next to him.

"Glasses," He hissed through his teeth, his jaw tightly shut. The pain was slowly dying to a small dull throb, but it was still annoying.

Emma was the first thing he saw clearly, and he could make out her bloodshot eyes, the tear tracks over her cheeks which were puffy, and her red nose. He frowned, putting his hand up, trying to reach for hers, "What's wrong? What happened?"

She caught his hand, clutching at it tightly, "It's James…he…he…" She whimpered, squeezing his hand as more tears streamed down her face.

He blinked slowly before moving his gaze to where Pomfrey was hovering. When she moved a bit, he could see James unconscious on the bed next to him. He was frightened by the weird branching on his chest. Was that from the lightning strike?

"He was struck by the lightning and falling fast," Emma was able to say between her sobs. "You caught him but hit the floor a bit too fast. Madam Pomfrey said we were lucky we got him when we could or else he'd be suffering from deafness and brain damage."

Jude clenched his jaw tensely, trying to stop the closing of his throat. Why was it always James who took the brunt of everything? He didn't deserve it; he was a good kid and a great friend. He swallowed dryly, moving his gaze back to the red head, "So, he's fine right?"

Emma nodded, wiping her eyes, "He'll be out for a few days because he has to recover from the shock, but he should be fine. The only lasting damage is the scar on his chest."

"What about his parents?" He asked, trying to sit up. The pain in his back flared once more but he was able to power over it. Who cared about his pain when his best friend was in a worse condition? He didn't. He'd rather focus on James than whine once more about his back.

"Mr. and Mrs. Potter were informed," She replied, sitting down on the stool next to his bed. "I'm sure they don't like hearing their son is in the infirmary again."

He swallowed, rubbing his eyes, "What about his brother; Albus? Has he been here?" He furrowed his brow in confusion when his female friend bit her lip and gazed at her lap. "What happened?"

"Albus, well he…" The red head frowned, fiddling with her fingers. "Since you also landed in the infirmary with James, Albus is trying to see if he can be your alternate. He even sent an owl to his parents to get permission as well."

Jude knew it was childish and stupid to feel the burning rage that boiled in his chest. He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white. He didn't get to protest to Emma since the team all filed in the infirmary. Some looked full of regret while Leon and Albus, who walked in with them, looked a bit smug.

Olivia cleared her throat awkwardly, "Well, Jude, after much discussion on this matter, we believe that it be best that you sit out the next game and let Albus Potter take your place. And since James is out, Leon will be taking his place."

"Hell no!" Both Jude and James barked much to everyone's surprise.

Jude jolted, turning quickly to James who was trying to sit up with much difficulty, "James-"

"James!" Emma exclaimed happily though Jude could hear the concern in her voice.

"Mr. Potter," Pomfrey scolded the boy, laying him back down on the bed.

James grunted, holding onto Pomfrey's hand when she tried to push him back down, "Adams isn't going to replace me next game because I'm fine. The spot isn't open so why don't you end this discussion."

Jude grinned at his friend, happy to see him up. James panted lightly, grinning back weakly. The blue eyed boy turned back to his team, "Albus Potter is not going to replace me. I'm fine and I'll still be fine when the next game starts. The spot's not open."

Albus glared at Jude who glared right back. Leon looked irate at James being up and Emma putting all her attention on the other boy. As the for the Gryffindor quidditch team, they looked so relieved it made Jude want to laugh.

Jude turned away from Albus who continued to glower and stared at his team, "So who won? I don't remember much after I caught James."

Olivia chuckled, moving over to his bed and ruffling his hair, "We won actually. You had touched the snitch before going to help James. Christianson tried to catch it when you went to help James, but the snitch automatically goes to the person who had touched it to prove who actually won."

Louis bumped fists with Jude, grinning, "You are like a superhero, Porter. You won the game and saved your friend."

"Because Potter always needs saving," Leon snarked, smirking at said boy.

James bristled while Jude rolled his eyes, "Shut up, Adams. No one wants to hear useless comments. Either you have something to say about the game, you can walk your arse out of the infirmary. My back is aching a bit and your whining about how you're still not playing a game isn't making it any better."

Simon snorted, covering his twitching lips while Louis walked out of the infirmary, his laughter bellowing through the halls. Olivia smirked and Kelli chuckled amusedly. Leon sneered at the two bedridden boys before storming out of the room.

Jude waved his hand, lying back down on the bed, "That includes you too, Potter. I don't need you glaring at me because you don't get to play either. Stop trying for shortcuts and get out."

James roared in laughter when his brother walked out of the room as well. Emma was shaking her head in slight disappointment, "Honestly, can't you boys just get along with others? It's like pulling teeth when you guys are around Leon or Albus."

"Thanks mate," James snickered, holding his hand up.

"Anytime, mate," Jude grinned, walking over with a bit of difficulty and did their secret handshake.


	10. Rivalry

**Chapter 10**

Things between the boys did not let up for a while. Leon trained day and night to beat James for his spot on the team. Albus sent Jude dirty looks every time he was around him. Jude was finally able to get on his broom stick without having his back flare in pain. James, unfortunately, was slowly getting around to walking. The lightning blast was still too fresh for him to be going back to his boisterous self.

The trio sat at the Great Hall with Jude feeding James after he took a bite out of his food. Emma had sat with them at first, but she then got sidetracked when Leon came and started talking to her about their potions class. Emma was eager to finally talk about class she practically jumped out of her seat to talk to him.

James glared at Leon but still opened his mouth to take the food Jude was feeding him. Jude shook his head when he glanced at the other two, "I honestly don't get why she's always with him either. I mean, they never talked our first year, so what makes this year so different?"

"When did they even start talking to each other?" James grumbled, taking another bite out of the treacle tart Jude presented to him. "Do they live near each other or something? I don't get it. There's no way they're so close after one day of talking to each other."

Jude shrugged with a sigh, bringing his arm up to feed his friend again, "I don't like it. With him hanging out with Emma, that means she won't hang out with us, and if she hangs out with us, Adams' is probably gonna think he can hang out with us too. I never had a problem with him until you had a problem with him."

"Thanks for being such a great friend, mate," James grinned at him, lifting his hand up. Once they finished their secret handshake, he continued, "I don't want him to think he can hang out with us either. We have to find out why she's hanging out with him."

Jude nodded before scratching his head thoughtfully, "Not only that, we also have to find out about that lightning that struck you."

"It was just lightning," James mumbled, shifting a bit uncomfortably. He winced when he felt a sharp pain radiate through him.

Jude shook his head, "I don't think so. The lightning was coming after me but my broomstick threw me out of the way. It then went straight to you as if it knew."

"Might just be coincidence."

"Lightning strikes aren't just coincidence," Jude responded. "Especially not when there's something like a lightning stone."

James groaned, "They said it was a myth. It's not real."

"That's what Adams said," Jude stated with a shake of his head. "Do you wanna have the same mindset as Adams?"

He jumped, startled when James suddenly slammed his hands on the table. "Emma!" James shouted, startling the poor girl out of her conversation. "We're going to the library after lunch so you better be ready to go."

"But James-"

"Oi, Potter," Leon frowned. "We're trying to have a conversation he-"

"No one's talking to you, Adams," James waved his hand, dismissing the now sneering boy. "Are you coming, Emma?"

The red head looked a bit uneasy but nodded her head anyways. James nodded firmly while Jude hid his snickers behind his hand. He knew how to make James tic and it was going to be a bit fun. It was fun having best friends.


	11. Research

**Chapter 11**

Jude yawned as quietly as he could while in the library, rubbing his eyes to get the sleep off there. They had been in the library since the sun came up since James insisted. Teachers and other students they were just taking their studies seriously. While he knew Emma got more books that had nothing to do with what they were searching for, they still hadn't found anything on the lightning stone.

Emma glanced at her friend before moving her eyes back to the books, "Are you still feeling tired, Jude? You know we can just go back to bed. It is the weekend."

"No, I'm fine," Jude said with another yawn. He scratched his head, smacking his lips, "I just really hope we can something that's useful. So far, I haven't found any books that even mention the lightning stone."

"It's fine," Emma reassured, dropping a book on the table next to them. "We still have a lot of time. The sun is high in the sky and we have until they kick us out of the library."

Jude nodded in agreement. He peeked at the end of aisle, seeing James asleep at one of the tables. No one dared bother him, not even the librarian, since they knew he needed much sleep for recovery. He titled his head, "I think James should at least sleep somewhere comfortable."

The red head nodded next to him, glancing at their friend as well, "He won't be doing himself any good by sleeping here. Tell him to go back to the dorms and I'll ask Leon if he could help."

The blue eyed boy frowned, "No, I don't think James will go back to the dorms. He was dead set on finding something on the lightning stone and I don't want to hear Adams whine about how the stone is a myth."

"You guys need to give Leon a chance," She said, her eyes holding a bit of pleading. "He's really nice and fun to be around."

"So are we," He mumbled, dragging his eyes back to her. He decided to ask what had been nagging him since the beginning of this year. "Why are you so close to Adams anyways? You guys weren't friends last year let alone even talk to one another. What changed?"

He watched in bewilderment as she stiffened, her hand pausing over the book she was about to grab. She cleared her throat weakly, finally grasping the book, "I don't know what you're talking about. I just wanted more friends than just you and James. Is that too much to ask?"

"Bit hurtful, but no," He whispered dejectedly before straightening. "That's not it, is it? Your reaction says something entirely different. I promise, I won't get mad at whatever you say. We are friends, Emma. You can trust us."

She bit her lip, her eyes filling with tears suddenly. Before he could reassure her, she began to speak, "M-my dad said that it would be b-best if I didn't hang out with friends who would get me in trouble and who didn't let me get hurt like last year."

A lump formed quickly in his throat as he left his mouth open loosely. So it was his fault she was spending more time with Leon. It was because he let her come with him to find Lazarus and got her hurt. If she was friends with Leon, she wouldn't have to deal with any more complications in her years at Hogwarts and could live a healthy life. It was his fault, just like Harry said.

He swallowed the lump thickly, his eyes blurring with tears. His breath hitched when he tried to take a breath to calm himself. He dug the heel of his hand in eyes, trying to hold back any tears that threatened to fall.

"Jude," Emma whispered, a few tears falling down her face as well. "I'm sorry. This is why I didn't want to tell y-"

She was startled by the slamming of another book on the table. She turned, setting a hand over her heart, "J-James, you startled me."

James didn't spare her a glance as he walked towards Jude who was wiping away all his tears, "You alright, mate?"

Jude sniffled, nodding feebly, "M'fine. I just-" He stopped himself from speaking anymore, not wanting to break down in tears again.

"You said you wouldn't be mad," Emma said tremulously, her lower lip quivering. "I didn't mean to-"

James silenced her by putting his hand on her shoulder. He smiled slightly, "We're not mad at you, Emma. Yes, we don't like the fact that your father doesn't want you to be friends with us, but we understand. But just because we understand doesn't mean we have to like it. Now let's start researching, okay?"

She nodded slowly and began looking through the books again. Jude stayed quiet throughout the whole day, and James didn't feel like talking unless it was about the stone. By the time the moon had come up, they didn't find anything about the stone and considered the day a failure.


	12. Christmas

**Chapter 12**

It had been a few weeks since their research on the stone. Once it hit Christmas break, James made sure Jude made good on his promise from last year and made him pack his stuff so he could spend the break with the Longbottoms, Weasleys, and Potters. Though Jude was happy to spend the break with Hannah and Neville, he was reluctant to visit James' family since he couldn't stand the dirty looks Harry threw at him.

Before they had left, they had given presents to Emma. Jude got her a book while James got her some sweets. In return, she gave Jude a muggle book he hadn't read and James a watch. Though James didn't seem like he cared for it at first, he still wore it when they had gotten on the train.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Jude murmured questioningly as he rode with James on the train to the station. "I mean, no offense, mate, but I'd rather spend Christmas without mental death threats thrown at the back of my head."

"You'll be fine," James reassured. "My mom's there and I'm gonna be there so you have nothing to worry about. It's not like he's gonna do anything anyways."

Jude nodded slightly, leaning his head on the glass, "I guess you're right. I'm just being cautious is all."

The train ride lasted for another hour or so before they finally reached the station. They took their belongings and got off, meeting their parents and guardians. Jude grinned happily, hugging Hannah tightly, "Hi, Hannah."

Hannah chuckled, ruffling his messy hair, "Hey, Jude. You ready for the break?" She pulled away to give Neville a hug and kiss. "Hello, Neville."

"Hi, love," Neville greeted with a smile before putting his arm around Jude's shoulder. "I hope we give you a great Christmas, Jude."

Jude chuckled as they walked off the station, just barely behind the Potters, "Well, it's my first time celebrating Christmas with other people, so I'm sure it'll be good."

James slowed his pace, walking with them, "You guys are coming over, right? That way, it'll be an even better Christmas."

"That we are, James," Neville smiled at the grinning boys. "But first, let's get home and settle down."

…

After settling down at home for a couple of days, Christmas Eve came around pretty quickly. Neville helped Jude into his dress shirt, tie and slacks that he had bought for him last Christmas while Hannah tried to tame the boy's hair.

"Honestly, Jude," Hannah sighed as she pulled the comb from his hair. "It would help once in a while if you combed your hair."

Jude ran a hand, wincing at his sensitive scalp while he fiddled with the tie Neville had just tied, "Sorry, Hannah. I just like it this way."

She ruffled his hair teasingly, "You look like a rapscallion. I hope you like it because that is never going to be tamed."

He patted his hair, grinning, "I like it. Can we go now?"

"Yes, we can," Neville smiled, taking his hand and his wife's. He made sure he had all the presents before Apparating.

.

"Shh, shh, it's okay, Jude. It'll pass," Hannah whispered, rubbing his back comfortingly. "You'll get used to it."

Jude dry heaved, using a shaking hand to his mouth. Once he was sure his breakfast and lunch would stay put, he drifted his gaze to the place Neville had taken them to. It was big, much bigger than any house he had been to. They said it was called the Burrow and the Weasley family lived there.

He slowly stood straight, patting Hannah's hand to indicate that he was alright. They soon got to walk inside. The door opened, revealing a red haired woman who smiled at them kindly, "Oh, Neville, Hannah. It's so good to see you." She hugged the two.

Neville smiled, "It's good to see you too, Mrs. Weasley."

Mrs. Weasley pulled away, glancing down at Jude. She smiled, "And who is this?"

"Ju-Jude Porter, ma'am," He smiled, holding out his hand. "I'm a friend of James'."

He was startled when she pulled his hand and smothered him in a hug, "Oh, it's nice to meet you, Jude. I'm Molly Weasley; James' grandmother."

He was a bit dazed after she pulled away. Neville helped usher him in the house with Hannah. He blinked slowly before he was faced with an older man with glasses and red hair, "Hello, I'm Arthur Weasley." He held out his hand, "I don't think I've seen you before."

He chuckled in his daze, shaking his hand, "I'm Jude Porter, sir. I'm a friend of James' and I'm living with Neville and Hannah."

"Ah, yes," Arthur smiled widely. "I've heard a lot about you from James. It's great to finally meet you."

"You too," He murmured before more people came on over to greet him. He met Percy, Audrey, George, Angelina, Bill, Fleur, Lucy, Hermione, Ron, Hugo, and Charlie Weasley. He said hi again to Victoire, Ginny, Teddy, Molly, Rose, Lily, Fred, Louis, Roxanne, and Dominique. He reluctantly greeted Albus and Harry Potter.

James came over, grinning happily and took him with him where he sat with Louis, Fred, Charlie, Bill, Ron, George, Teddy, Ginny, Lily, Harry and Albus. They spent most of the night talking about quidditch. They spoke about the world cup, and the house cup which James, Louis, Fred and Roxanne proudly announced it was because of their new seeker that they actually won the cup after years of losing.

Once it was past midnight, Mrs. Weasley gave everyone pillows and blankets for the whole sleeping over. George, Percy, Ron, Bill, Charlie, and Ginny got their own rooms with their significant others. Some of their kids chose whether or not they wanted to go to the rooms or sleep in the living room with Neville, Hannah, Jude, and Teddy. James, Lily, Fred, Roxanne, Louis, Hugo and Victoire, much to her father's chagrin, stayed down.

Jude stared at the ceiling, blinking and hoping that sleep would come to him sooner rather than later. He could hear James' slight snoring next to him and Fred's loud ones just a few feet away. With a sigh, he stood up and walked to the kitchen silently.

His heart jumped in his throat when he saw a familiar head of red hair. He swallowed as Ginny turned around and gave him a small smile, "Oh, hello, Jude. What are you doing up?" She chuckled when he glanced back at the others frantically. "Don't worry. I put a silencing charm so they wouldn't hear me and wake up."

He sighed in relief, scratching his head, "I couldn't sleep. I was hoping to get some kind of snack to help me."

She nodded understandingly and sat down at the table. She gestured for him to sit across from her which he was quick to do so. "So, how's school?"

"It's good," He answered in a mumble, putting his hands on the table. "I really like learning everything and it's great when I get to play quidditch. Especially now since Emma and James are on the team."

"Emma," Ginny said, raising her eyebrows. "I've heard James talk about her, but I don't think I've ever seen her."

Jude nodded slightly, "Yeah. She's a muggleborn and always right away goes to her parents whenever we go home. She's really smart though. She's helped me and James with our homework all the time." He chuckled with a grin, "I'm sure James likes as more than a friend though."

Ginny perked up at that, smirking, "Really? I don't think I've heard of any of that. How do you know? Has he told you?"

Jude shook his head, "No. I can just see it. He always wants to be around her and doesn't like it when she's with other boys, especially Leon Adams. At first, I just thought it was because we're all best friends but he's more hostile towards Adams than anyone else."

"Wow," Ginny grinned, leaning back in her seat. "I would've never guess it would come so early. He really is my son."

Jude grinned back. If there was one thing he liked about Ginny, it was that she reminded him of James so much. Like mother like son.

…

In the morning, after being rudely awakened by Fred who thought it was funny to shoot of magical fireworks to wake everyone up, they all gathered in the living room, opening their presents.

James got many presents from his grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins and parents as did almost everyone else. Jude got a present from James which was a picture of him, James, and Emma that moved just like the ones he had seen almost everywhere now. He thanked his friend and gave him his present which was a necklace that had a quaffle on the end. His friend thanked him with a noogie.

Jude then opened his next present from Neville and Hannah. He blinked at the slips of paper in his hands, "Quidditch World Cup?" His eyes widened excitedly. "No way. You got me a tickets to the world cup?"

Neville nodded, smiling, "Well, I knew Harry and everyone was going to the World Cup so I thought you'd like to go as well."

Jude laughed, hugging his guardians tightly, "I love it so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you." He turned around to cheer with the boisterous James. "We can invite Emma too."

James' expression faltered before he cheered again. Ginny's smirk went unnoticed by everyone. Mrs. Weasley came up, smiling happily at the boy, "I'm glad you're liking Christmas, Jude. Here," She held out a present for him. "James asked me to make this for you. It's from the Potter-Weasley family."

He blinked before smiling gratefully. He took it from her hands and opened it, revealing a blue jumper with the letter J in the middle. He could feel the nice, warming wool and felt his eyes water. He sniffled, rubbing his eyes, "Thank you. Thank you so much."

Mrs. Weasley hushed him, embracing him, "Shh, it's okay, darling. You're welcome. It was my pleasure."

Spending 9 years with a man who wouldn't care if you were dead was something Jude was used to. When he finally came to Hogwarts and got into the Wizarding world, he realized what it was like to have people care about him. He realized that his life was worth something and nothing was better than having love in your life.


	13. Back to School

**Chapter 13**

"So how was Christmas with the Potters?" Emma asked as they walked back to the common room. It had only been a day after they got back from break. Emma had wanted to ask them when they woke in the morning, but Olivia made sure they all got to the dreaded practice since they didn't practice over the break.

Jude shrugged as James snorted, "It wasn't anything amazing really. It was nice and all. I mean, at least Mr. Potter kept his glares to a minimum and I didn't have to deal with Albus. The Weasley family was really nice to and it was nice spending time with them and Hannah and Neville."

"That's nice," Emma sighed as they walked into the Gryffindor common room. "I got to hang out with my parents. It was nice to spend Christmas with them again."

Jude smiled before remembering something. He snapped his fingers with a grin, "Oh yeah. I forgot. I need to get something."

He ran up the staircase to the dormitory, ignoring Emma's questioning stare. He did a quick search for something, grabbing the item before running back downstairs. He grinned at Emma, holding out one of the tickets he had gotten for Christmas, "Here you go. This is another Christmas present from Neville and Hannah."

"What is it?" Emma mumbled questioningly as she took the ticket. She skimmed over it before her eyes widened excitedly, "The Quidditch World Cup? Are you serious?!" She glanced over at the two boys frantically. "You're giving me a ticket to the World Cup this year?"

Jude nodded just as excitedly, "Yeah. Neville got me to tickets and since James and his family are going, I just thought maybe you could go to. The three of us, you know?"

Emma jumped up, giving him a hug before pulling away and giving James a hug as well. Jude hid his snickers when James' face lit up with a blush. Emma pulled away from the other boy as well, running up the stairs to her dorm.

James blinked slowly, turning to Jude who had a knowing smirk. He frowned, "What?"

Jude shrugged, snickering as he brought out his homework, "Nothing, James. It's nothing."

"Whatever," James rolled his eyes, following his friends example.

…

A couple of months passed after that. It had been filled with practicing and studying almost every day. Jude was surprised he was still sane after everything. The next quidditch match came; Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff. Unfortunately, like their last game, a storm was happening as well.

Jude watched James and Emma fly effortlessly through the air, easily scoring dozens of points. At this point in time, it wouldn't matter if he caught the snitch; Hufflepuff wouldn't be able to win with only 50 points on their side.

He concentrated his hearing, hoping to catch the familiar sound of wings humming. A minute later, he shot off on his broomstick, flying towards the ground with the Hufflepuff seeker following him.

"_Porter has found the snitch,_" A Ravenclaw 7th year boy announced. "_Beckett is right on his tail, hoping to get his hand in. Will this 6__th__ year lose to a 2__nd__ year just like last year? Only one way to find out._"

Jude flattened his body on his broom, feeling the cold air nip at his face and the torrent of rain drops splash against his flushed cheeks and goggles protecting his glasses. With a quick glance behind him, he saw Paul Beckett trailing right behind him.

He gritted his teeth, hoping to go faster and shake the other boy off. He inhaled sharply in shock when his broom maneuvered out of the way as lightning struck where he was once flying. He swallowed dryly, his stomach lurching when his broomstick shoved him out of the way of another lightning strike.

Was something after him?

He shook his head slightly, shooting off towards the pesky snitch. He had no time to think about that. He had to finish this game no matter what. He promised Olivia he'd do whatever it took to win the house cup again this year.

He reached out his hands, feeling the burst of wind coming from the snitch's fluttering wings. With a shout, he threw himself forward, closing his hand around the snitch as his body slipped off the slippery broomstick.

As he fell towards the pitch, his eyes widened at the lightning strike coming towards him. It chose a real convenient time to try and hit him. He closed his eyes, bracing himself for the shock only to find himself landing on his broomstick which flew him away from the bolt.

He exhaled shakily in relief, holding up his trembling hand to the crowd to show the snitch that he held securely despite his shaken appearance.

The crowd burst into cheers. The Ravenclaw announcer laughed into the mic, "_There you have it, folks. Gryffindor wins the match at 240-50. We'll see them again against Ravenclaw towards the end of the year._"

Jude panted lightly as he landed on the pitch with his team. He grinned a bit uneasily despite everyone's happy appearances. He should be happy; really, but he was just too shaken up by what had happened. Was the lightning really trying to hit him? If so, was it just coincidental or was someone controlling it?

He blinked out of his thoughts when he felt someone grab his shoulder. James frowned worriedly, "You okay, mate? You look a bit off."

Jude gave him a small smile, shaking his head as they walked towards the locker room, "I'm fine, James." When his friend continued to give him a dubious look, he sighed, "I'll tell you and Emma later. Right now, let's celebrate our victory, yeah?"

James rolled his eyes before grinning, "If you say so." After they got dressed and were walking back to the common room, he spoke up again, "Hey, Jude. I never got to ask you; when's your birthday?"

"Hm?" The blue eyed boy blinked questioningly before scratching his head sheepishly. "Oh, my birthday. Um…it's January 31st."

Both James and Emma halted in their steps, glaring at the boy. He swallowed, feeling his neck heat up uncomfortably. Funny, it never did that before. "What is it?"

"Your birthday passed and you didn't even tell us?" Emma questioned incredulously.

Jude shrugged helplessly, "I-I no…I just…it never really mattered to me. I never celebrated it with Piers anyways. I didn't think it was a big deal."

He choked in shock when James grabbed him in a headlock while Emma gave him a noogie. He whined playfully, "G-guys. I'm sorry. Really."

James chuckled, continuing to walk towards the common room with his best friend in a headlock, "I'm gonna owl Hannah and see how she feels about you not mentioning your birthday two years in a row. I'm sure she'd love to hear it."

Jude groaned pitifully as he begrudgingly followed his two friends towards the common room. Okay, maybe he should tell his friends some things after all.


	14. Planning

**Chapter 14**

"Alright," Jude laid out his supposed blue prints as he and his two best friends stood in the library once more. After pleading with his friends to listen to his explanations, they soon found themselves in a small corner away from all the other studying students.

He pointed at a poorly drawn quidditch pitch, "This is why I believe the lightning stone is real." He glanced up at his friends, seeing their questioning gazes. "The first game of year was us against Slytherin. The lightning strike came at me, but my broom moved me out of the way. Now, who got hit with the lightning stri-? James, please put your hand down."

James gave a small grin, ignoring the small glare Emma gave him. He waved his hand amusedly, "Continue, mate."

"Right," Jude nodded before continuing. "Now, we've had more lightning storms over the past 10 months than ever recorded in wizard history. I'm not saying that these are caused by the lightning stone, but the fact that…" He pointed at the quidditch pitch once again. "On the next game, I was almost hit by lightning multiple times, but my broom moved me out of the way again."

"You and your broom have some kind of weird relationship," James muttered.

Emma shook her head, her eyes scanning the paper in front of them, "So if the lightning stone is real, who would have it? Why would they have it?"

"Who do you think, Emma?" Jude pointed to a crudely drawn image of what was supposed to be Lazarus. "He wants it because of what happened last time with the fire."

"A battle of elements," Emma stated thoughtfully. She pursued her lips, tapping her chin before turning back to her friend, "The fire that helped us last year; was that your doing?"

Jude shrugged, sitting down and gazing at the map, "Don't know. It just pushed out of me when Lazarus-Emma, please?"

"Sorry."

James sat up, leaning his head on his hand, "I didn't see this whole fire play personally, but do you think you could control it?"

"If I could, why do I have fire scars on my back?"

"I think the real question is; if a fire did kill your parents, how are you still alive?" James said, frowning.

Jude opened his mouth to retort before snapping it shut. Why was he still alive? How was he still alive? He felt a pounding in his temples causing him to grit his teeth in frustration.

"Sorry, mate," James apologized, patting his friend's shoulder. He turned to Emma who was biting her lip as she also thought of his question. "Another question; if the lightning stone is real, who was the first person to mention it?"

Jude furrowed his brow in thought as Emma gasped in realization, "Professor Miles. Remember, he told us after he saw a flash of lightning in class."

"You don't think he's working for-you know-do you?" Jude asked, scratching his head as he drew a stick figure then proceeded to write the professor's name. "If he is, it would make sense on why the lightning attacks happened during the quidditch games."

"So what?"

James sighed, tapping the desk, "We follow the bastard. Sooner or later, he'll report back to the blond git just like Professor Lamb did. We'll get him."

Emma spoke up next, "While this might be a battle of elements, I don't think the bad guys took all of the elements into account."

"Bad guys? Really?" James raised his eyebrow incredulously.

Jude gestured for her to continue, "What do you mean? I thought lightning was one of the strongest elements ever."

"That may be true in some cases," Emma nodded, pushing a strand of her red hair behind her ear. "But each element has a weakness."

"Like fire to water," James added.

Jude nodded, "Or wind to fire."

"Exactly," Emma agreed, continuing. "Wind is weak against fire because fire is fueled by air. Lightning is weak against wind because wind is a natural electrical insulator."

"But we don't have wind on our side," Jude put in with a shake of his head. "If we tried to go against-you know-he'd have the upper hand."

Emma shook her head as well, giving her friends a small smile, "That's not entirely true. While he may have lightning on his side and he believes we have fire; he didn't take account what fire can actually do. Since fire takes up all the air of the wind-"

Jude snapped his fingers, grinning widely, "That means that the lightning won't get past the fire." He patted Emma's shoulder, "I don't know how you do it, Emma, but you really surprise us all the time."

"But, if we do control fire, we'd have to set up some kind of raging fire wall," Emma added a bit doubtfully.

"True," Jude rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He shrugged, "Well, I'll see if I can actually control fire."

He held out his hand, his friends watching, and stared intently at his fist. Moments past before he gave up, shaking his head, "I don't think so. I think it was just a spur of the luck thing."

"We must be really lucky then," James said, scratching his forehead. "Do you think it comes from being angry?"

"Maybe," Jude murmured, leaning back in his chair. "I mean, the fireplace did explode on Piers when he was beating me and tried to keep me from going to Hogwarts."

James chose to ignore Piers' involvement in the sentence while Emma just looked absolutely mortified, "So, you were angry right? I know I would be. Not only that; Jude, you never get cold or hot ever since we've known you."

"Good genes," Jude tried feebly. When his friends only glared at him, he slumped his shoulders, "Guys, I don't know. Honestly, I don't even know my parents or any of my family, really. How am I supposed to explain that happens around me?"

Emma sighed, "He's right. For now, we should juts focus on making a plan to see if Professor Miles is actually working for you-know-who."

The two boys nodded and went back to the drawings before them as they created a plan on catching their professor.


	15. Emma's Round

**Chapter 15**

After successfully getting the quidditch house cup again, and having to have another party for the house, Jude was tired and he couldn't believe James and Emma were up and ready to have this quest again. He either needed to start exercising more, or Emma and James were just full of energy. He knew James was, but Emma didn't seem like the type. He assumed she was just used to staying up all night studying.

He blinked rapidly, trying to clear his vision even with his glasses on. He still didn't get why they had to wake up at 3 o'clock in the morning for this. It was unjust. To him at least.

James walked over to them quietly, the invisibility cloak in his hand. "We ready?" He whispered. "Just like last time, okay? Hopefully without the cursing and all that though."

"We're ready, James," Emma replied in the same tone, nodding. Jude nodded with her, his head bobbing jerkily.

James threw the cloak over the three of them and began to walk out. They tiptoed down the moving stairwell, making sure to get to the bottom without being sidetracked. Once at the bottom, they moved to the DADA classroom where they knew Professor Miles was going to come out from.

"Are we really sure we should be doing this?" Jude murmured as they waited next to the door of the DADA classroom. "I mean, we could just wait till he comes after-"

Emma shushed him frantically as the door opened. Professor Miles stepped out, glancing around curiously before shrugging and walking out. The trio began walking before the door shut and followed the man out. Jude noticed the professor had his hand in his pocket the entire time, as if fiddling with something.

They continued to follow him as he stepped out of the school and into the forest of death. Jude felt a chill run down his spine but kept his gaze forward to make sure they didn't lose sight of the man.

The trio was blown back by a spell that exploded in front of them. Jude grunted painfully when he felt the root of a tree dig into his back. He glanced over to his friends, seeing James holding Emma protectively as they stood up.

The tall man in front of them bellowed a laugh, twirling his wand in his fingers, "Look at you kittens. A bunch of kiddies Lord Lazarus wants us to take care of. This is going to be ea-"

"_Alarte Ascendare!_" The spell shot from Emma's wand, sending the man before them high in the air. Tall man cried out as his body slammed into a tree on his way down.

Emma got out of James' hold, holding her wand towards the man, "Go. I'll catch up with you guys."

Jude stared at her disbelievingly, "Emma, are you mental? Do you really think we're just gonna-"

"Let's go," James gripped his friend's hand tightly, running with him. He left the invisibility cloak by Emma's feet, hoping she would use it.

"James!" Jude shouted as he was dragged with his friend. "What are you doing? We can't just leave Emma there!"

James kept his gaze forward as he replied, "Emma is the best witch I know in our year. Are you telling me you doubt what she can do? Remember, she was the one who helped stop Lazarus last year."

Jude swallowed dryly, gritting his teeth against the pain blooming in his chest. Of course he knew how smart and talented Emma was, but that didn't mean he was just going to leave her to fight that death eater. Who knows what could happen?

He glanced back, hearing more spells shouted out. He could see the sparks of color coming from them. He hoped and prayed to Merlin that Emma would come out unscathed.


	16. James' Advice

**Chapter 16**

After running for what felt like hours, Jude pulled his hand away from James' and halted his running, feeling small trembles rush through his overworked legs. He swallowed thickly, feeling his saliva build in his mouth. He spit on the ground and turned towards James, panting, "How could you just leave Emma?"

James clenched his jaw and fists tightly, his knuckles turning white under the strained skin. "I didn't want to leave her, but Emma knows what she's doing. I have faith in her and so should you."

"I have all the faith in the world for Emma," Jude retorted, the cool wind nipping at the sweat on his forehead. "That still doesn't change the fact that Emma, a 12 year old girl, is going against a fully grown man. A homicidal one at that too."

"She can take care of herself."

"I know she can!" Jude shouted indignantly, feeling tears sting his eyes. "I'm just saying that we're better together. We're a team and we always will be. We work better together which is why we shouldn't have left her."

James exhaled raggedly before turning to his friend, "Jude, I know I'm sounding like an insensitive friend, but you have to trust me and Emma on this. We know what we're doing; we're protecting you to the best of our abilities."

Jude shook his head as tears began to fall from his eyes. His breath hitched as he spoke, "I don't want to be protected. I just want you both safe."

"And we want the same for you," James replied firmly. "You really think we'd like it if you were somehow captured by Lazarus. That's the last thing we want. You're our best friend, Jude, and I know it's hard letting us do this but we're doing it because we care about you. Trust us."

Jude swallowed once more before nodding reluctantly. He would have to take James' words to heart. It was just that no one ever cared for him before. The only person who cared about him was himself and sometimes that even waned on certain days. To have someone readily put their life on the line for him; he just didn't know how to react to that.

He was jolted out of his thoughts when James shouted, "_Expelliarmus!_" A red spark flew from James' wand and hit the death eater's hand, sending the man's wand flying away from him. James pushed his friend forward, keeping his wand on the man in front of them, "Go. Emma and I will be fine. Just go and do what you have to do to send that git Lazarus to hell."

Jude gazed at his friend before nodding and rushing off, dodging the fists from the death eater above him. He had to have faith in James and Emma; if not, he'd never see them again and he wasn't ready for that. There was no way he was going to let Lazarus win this with his friends' lives on the line.


	17. Always Have Your Back

**Chapter 17**

If there was one thing Jude didn't like besides Lazarus, people working for Lazarus, and arrogant pricks, it was running. He didn't get why anyone would like the burning of their lungs and the dryness of their throats. The muscles in his legs were beginning to ache a bit and he still didn't know where he was going.

The worst thing was that he couldn't hear Emma's or James' fights anymore. He didn't dare let his mind slip into the inevitable thoughts.

He finally halted his running, bending over and panting harshly. His throat burned causing him to gag. He set his hands on his knees and let himself stand still in order to get his head back together and rest his straining body.

He tensed when he heard a twig snap ahead of him. He swallowed, ignoring the pain that the action caused, and straightened himself up to stare at the person in front of him. Professor Miles appeared from the shadows, smirking amusedly as he took in the boy before him.

"I'm impressed," Miles stated, putting his hands together and smiling behind them. "You guys actually managed to get those dunder heads back there."

Jude clenched his jaw, his hand twitching towards his wand, "Why are you doing this?" He already knew the answer; he just really wanted to know the reason.

Miles brought out his arms and shrugged nonchalantly, "It's simple really. We just want your blood to fulfill our mission. I just don't get why you won't cooperate. Liam was even nice enough to try and be your friend before you found everything out."

He said Lazarus' name so naturally, so casually. How long had they known each other before they started this mission? Jude mentally shook his head; he didn't care for that. He needed to find Lazarus and stop him from using the stone. "So the lightning stone really exists?"

Miles grinned widely and chuckled, "It sure does. Most elemental stones exist just like the Philosopher's Stone. It was hard finding it, I'll tell you that, but Liam wanted it since you managed to escape his grasp last time." His eyes took on a wicked glint, "He let me test it out during some of the quidditch games just to see if it actually worked."

Jude felt something in his chest begin to roar as realization dawned on him. He glared harshly at the professor, "You were the one who shot the lightning at James."

The elder male laughed almost sheepishly, "That was my bad. I meant to hit you, but for some reason, you moved out of the way and I had to get something else valuable to you. What better than your best friend James Potter whose father also took out our other great dark lord."

The blue eyed boy clenched his fists tightly, feeling his palms sting as his nails punctured the skin. The roaring in his chest grew louder the more he stared at the former professor's amused face. "You…" He growled through his gritting teeth, his body heating up. "YOU BASTARD!"

Flames ripped through his very being, heading straight towards the man. Miles yelped and ungracefully dodged out of the way. When the fire died down, the trees before them were all burned away, leaving a large clear path ahead.

Miles huffed while getting back onto his feet. He dusted himself off as he regarded the young male, "So what they said was true. You really are a hot head." He reached into his pocket, taking out his wand. He smirked, "Too bad you won't be lasting that long against me to actually see Liam."

Jude swallowed, the roar in his chest simmering down to a small dull. His hands slowly made their way to his wand as he watched Miles ready his. He had to act quickly. If Miles shot his blast fir-

"_Stupefy!_"

The spell shot out from behind Jude and slammed into Miles who flew into one of the still standing trees behind him. Jude turned around quickly, his heart stopping in relief when he laid eyes on James and Emma. James had a cut on his cheek while Emma had a red welt on her forehead.

He rushed up to them, taking them into his arms. He almost sobbed into their shoulders from his happiness, "Man, am I glad to see you guys."

James patted his back with his free hand while his other pointed his wand at the recuperating Miles. "Told you not to doubt us, mate. Now get going to Lazarus. We'll take care of dear old professor."

Jude sniffled, rubbing his nose as he frantically glanced towards the older male behind them, "Are you sure?"

Emma smiled reassuringly, patting his shoulder, "We've got this, Jude. Now go."

Jude bit his lip but nodded. He'd have to trust that that they knew what they were doing. His friends weren't stupid. They knew how to handle themselves. He just had to trust them.

He gave them once last nod before running off, dodging the dazed Miles who made a grab for his leg. He breathed harshly, feeling his throat and lungs burn back up when his body to exert itself once more.

"You little runt!" He heard Miles' voice shout out to him angrily. "This is the last time you'll see your little friends alive, Porter, if you don't give yourself up." He then heard him yelp once more, "What the heck is that? Gah, is that my-"

Jude shook his head and keep his feet moving. He didn't have time to stop. He had to find Lazarus and stop him once and for all. From the sounds of it, James and Emma had everything under control so everything was on him now. He could do this. He was the only one who could do this. He wasn't going to back away.

He stopped at a large clearing several ways away from James, Emma, and Miles. He gazed around, seeing an empty pot before him. He tensed when he heard chuckling.

Lazarus stepped out into the clearing, smirking, "I knew you'd come, Jude. It was only a matter of time."


End file.
